Driving between Lafayette, Indiana — Gatlinburg, TN.
Day 1: started at 12:30PM and arrived at 11:30PM.
Driving through Kentucky and reached Tennessee.
We stopped at a McDonald’s near Memphsis, IN but we waited 30 minutes for a FAST food take-out.
It was Friday evening so the traffic was busy.
Dinner at a Japanese restaurant at Knoxville, TN. The sushi tasted OK and later we went to Walmart for grocery shopping.
Day 5: started at 10:00AM and arrived at 7:00PM.
2 PM we had lunch at Zaxby’s. The chicken sandwich tasted good but the chicken fingers were too salty. French fries are soft and crispy.
Some take-aways from the trip
Expect delays when driving across states
There are many exciting things on the road that slow down the traffic: road constructions, car accidents, oversized trucks, aggressive drivers. I would plan a 30 min to 1 hour buffer time in the itinerary.
Early in & early out of the National Park
This is October, the autumn leaf season. Heavy traffic plague around major attractions in the National Park. Tourists start gathering after 9AM and at noon is the peak time.
Park entrances are limited (2–3 maybe) and far away from each other. Therefore it takes time to divert excessive traffics from one side to the other. A insignificant STOP sign can cause 1 hour delay of your trip.
If you plan to hike early, bring warm clothes and headlights. If you’re not familiar with the trail, it’s better to wait till daylight or follow other hikers.
Traffic sucks.
Higher the elevation, colder in the morning
I made some mistakes here. I should have check the elevation to plan for clothing. Or I could store some extra clothing in the car in case. In the morning I may need warmer jacket and hat. But at noon I will take off everything but summer hiking shirts and pants.
For example, Clingmans Dome parking lot (1950m) is much more cooooooler than Cosby campground (750m).
Download offline map and use a GPX tracking app
Plenty of trail options can be found on the road. GPX app can help you find your way out. There’s hardly any reception in the mountains.
A taste of Appalachian Trail
This is my dream com true!! I watched the documentary “Karl Meltzer: Made to be Broken” that the athlete ran across the Appalachian Trail (AT). The trail to Mt. Cammerer is easy but it may not easy to hike for several weeks. It’s hard to get clean water and shelter.
Finish to-do list before the trip
I plan to finish 5 school work dues before leaving but I couldn’t make it. I ended up working on my laptop at the back seat of the car for 2 hours plus 1 hour in the hotel. It was exhausting. I had a car sick and sore eyes. I couldn’t fully enjoy the trip until I cleared everything of my list.
Working at the back seat is not fun.
Guacamole & sausage tastes good.
It tasted better than the sandwich with cheese and almond butter.
